Approximately 200 people gathered at the Federal Courthouse on Broadway in Albany to participate in the National Action Network's "Justice for Trayvon" rally and march Saturday. (Mike McMahon / The Record)

Sharif Lasonde of Ellenville, N.Y., was among the 200 people who participated in the National Action Network's "Justice for Trayvon" rally outside of the Federal Courthouse on Broadway in Albany Saturday. (Mike McMahon / The Record)

ALBANY -- The Capital Region took part in a national day of protest marking dissatisfaction with the recent acquittal of a man accused of gunning down an unarmed black teen on a Florida street.

The teen, Trayvon Martin, 17, was shot and killed after a confrontation with George Zimmerman, a self-proclaimed neighborhood watch member, after a violent struggle between the two.

Protests were reportedly set for 100 cities across the nation on Saturday, according to a press release from National Action Network, which organized the events.

The Albany protest, staged outside the Federal Courthouse on Broadway, drew some 200 people, many of whom carried signs and chanted the slogan 'no justice no peace.'

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Despite the chants, the demonstration was peaceful and relatively serene. The event began with a brief rally at the Federal Courthouse, which was followed by a march up Clinton Avenue, through Arbor Hill, to the Social Justice Center on Washington Avenue.

"This is part of a 100-city rally to try to get the Federal Government to bring charges against George Zimmerman," said one of the march's organizers. "But we also want to have a discussion that people don't want to talk about; a discussion about race."

Zimmerman was acquitted of murder and manslaughter by a Florida jury, largely due to the circumstances under which prosecutors were bound by Florida's controversial 'stand your ground' laws, which sanction and expand the use of deadly force in cases of so-called self-defense.

Martin had been walking along a street in Sanford, Florida; in an area patrolled by neighborhood volunteer Zimmerman.

The two became engaged in confrontation, the details of which remain somewhat unclear, but which ended with Zimmerman fatally shooting Martin in the chest.

"I'm here to support African-Americans, and black youth," said Majestic Tillman, a young filmmaker who briefly addressed the protesters on the courthouse steps. "I was a little nervous when I spoke up there on stage so that everyone else could hear a young black male speak about what's happening and what he feels is happening."

While Tillman said he has never had a situation like Trayvon Martin's, he has had contact with local police in situations where he was menaced and nearly victimized himself by assailants.

"I was raised to always call the cops," Tillman said. "I had a situation where someone was trying to rob me at the mall and instead of trying to handle it myself I went to them."

Tillman said his concerns weren't taken seriously by law enforcement, leaving him with a feeling of powerlessness.

"They tell us to go to them (the police) when we need them," he said. "And every time I go to them they do nothing."

Tillman's mother said it was important that people gathered and remembered what happened in Florida.

"I'm not going to tell my son to be less of a man because of police perception," Tillman said. "He's a young man, he's smart, he's a graduate and he shouldn't feel like he has to bow down or drop his head because of who he is."

Tillman said people have to know that young African-Americans can walk freely in cities across the country.

"I'm not going to let you define me," Tillman said. "We're just not going to take that."

Tillman, a college history major, said issues of institutional racism make people feel uncomfortable.

"You have to deal with it, it needs to be discussed; just like religious issues and gender issues," Tillman said. "We all have struggles."